In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser

Do you also, wittingly or otherwise, change languages or accents or vocabulary between different spaces (for all sorts of reasons)? [Many of us do so at school, in lecture rooms or at work] 

In a country like ours, with so much diversity, and skewed cultural and economic power distributions, sometimes you have to code-switch in order to survive, to be accepted, to fit in, in order to THRIVE/EARN...

It can be funny, innocent, silly. It can also, at other times, be costly, and even toxic and oppressive. 

I discussed the concept of code-switching with brilliant South African creative, poet and actress Lebo Mashile, in what turned out to be an amazing Twitter spaces conversation. 

My favourite response was a person who had tweeted that she had never encountered the concept before but now that it had been explained to her, suddenly SO SO MUCH about her life is suddenly illuminated. That is the power of giving language and meaning- putting words- to what we experience habitually, unconsciously because ... we simply get on with it. Naming our experiences is very empowering. 

I dare you take a chance on this podcast episode, and learn about code-switching. I am certain that you will be as fascinated as the many folks who shared their stories on Twitter with us.

Enjoy ! And share the episode with others who may be empowered by it also. 

Based on an essay I recently wrote ( https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times-daily/opinion-and-analysis/2022-08-02-eusebius-mckaiser-outrage-about-rape-must-be-accompanied-by-action-heres-what-we-might-do/?device=feature_phone  ) about rape culture, in response to the gang-rapes that had happened in Krugersdorp here in South Africa, I narrate the content of my essay. It focused on several aspects of our responses to incidents of rape when they are reported: a) an inappropriate grading of rape and murder, as if some rape stories are more "rage-worthy" than others - I explain why this is problematic ; b) the callous response of our minister of police, Bheki Cele, who implied that one woman was "lucky" to be raped by one man rather than by more than one man- I offer analysis of why this is problematic c) the proposal of chemical castration that has been raised by some in the ANC is a tempting "solution" to rape but won't work, and I explain in detail why it will not work.

I end the podcast with a reflection on the hard work required to deal with the deeper social structures and factors that sustain a culture that licences rape. 

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Brilliant historian Vashna Jagarnath is back!! We have decided to show James Baldwin lots of love in August, with three or four podcast episodes dedicated to the life & times of Baldwin. 

If you secretly don't know anything about Baldwin but have been too embarrassed to say so, we will bring you up to speed, and you'll know what the fuss is about. Hopefully it will inspire you to read him, and seek out audio and visual materials featuring him too. There is plenty of primary sources and even more secondary materials and scholarship ABOUT this genius. 

If you're already a Baldwin fanatic, you'll know that part of his excellence is that his work remains relevant across time and space, and therefore revisiting him is never a bad idea.

In this first episode we narrate his basic biography, locate him ideologically, and begin to introduce you to major themes in his work with more particular focus on racism.

Dig in & enjoy! 

Theuns du Toit was found guilty of violating various clauses of Stellenbosch University's disciplinary code for students and amended residence rules. The findings were deemed sufficiently serious to justify expulsion.

Is Theuns du Toit a drunk who lacked control of his bodily functions and urinated on a fellow student’s property? Or is he a white student who intentionally urinated on a black student’s property, motivated by racial superiority? The answers, yet to be settled with finality in various appeal forums, will either reduce Du Toit’s shame or mark him as a racist, haunting him for decades.

In this epsiode of In The Ring, I share my analysis based on an article I had written for TimesLIVE ( https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times-daily/opinion-and-analysis/2022-07-27-stellenbosch-university-vs-theuns-du-toit-lawfare-retards-antiracism-project/ )

I know many of you will be shocked that I agree with SOMETHING said by former president Thabo Mbeki. But an ad hominem response to his speech at the memorial service held in honour of the late ANC leader Jessie Duarte would not be useful. 

In this episode of In The Ring, I tell you what Mbeki said about Ramaphosa, explain why I agree and tell you the irresistible conclusion that follows from all this.

Have a listen!

Ida B Wells was a brilliant anti-colonialist activist, journalist, writer, teacher and a leader within the human rights movement of her time. Born on 16 July 1862, she grew up during a time when the legal end of slavery did not translate into an anti-racist United States of America. Lynchings, for example, which is a dominant theme of her work, was one mechanism used by white supremacists to continue instilling fear within Black people, and to continue social and economic oppression through that economy of fear. 

In this episode of In The Ring, brilliant historian Vashna Jagarnath is back. She narrates the life and times of Ida B Wells, in a manner that is truly compelling, and which I know will inspire you to do more reading and research of your own, beyond this podcast.

It is a fitting follow-up on our recent podcast epsiode - episode 104 - with Vashna, which had focused on the story of Juneteenth ( https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/episode-104-slavery-the-cosmpolitan-history/id1561851417?i=1000567120352 ).

We have to fight the silencing of Black voices, and popularise the stories of Black thinkers and important- and ordinary - historical figures. This is part of our commitment to epistemic justice. 

It is in that spirit that I hope you enjoy every minute of this conversation which moves across time and space, drawing links constantly between the life and times of Ida B Wells, and contemporary struggles of our own, which can draw on and learn from those of yesteryear. 

Police minister Bheki Cele shouted at some guy called Ian Cameron (from an outfit called Action Society) at a community safety event in Gugulethu, Cape Town. 

It is one of the most horrendous acts of  public bullying from a politician I have seen. In this edition of In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser I analyse the issues: what might have triggered the minister's response? Is there any explanation for his shouting? How should we (properly) characterise it? Are there factors that should make us soften our judgement of the minister? What, too, of Cameron? Ought he to have engaged the minister, in turn, differently to how he in fact did? Or not?

These are just some of the issues I explore.

PLEASE do not forget to subscribe to the podcast before you exit your podcast platform. 

Enjoy the content & kindly share the episode with friends, colleagues and family. 

A debate that's never been settled- and perhaps never will- is whether or not president Cyril Ramaphosa is liable for the deaths of 34 mineworkers in August 2012.

He was a director of Lonmin, the mining company the workers worked for. In a series of emails with other leaders of the company, Ramaphosa described the mineworkers strike action as "dastardly criminal" and he promised to convey that sentiment to the security cluster within government so that "concomitant action" could be taken.

A court found that there is no evidence in these Lonmin emails of Ramaphosa being liable for murderous action, either directly intentionally so or in terms of foreseeing the murder of the workers.

But, as News24 specialist legal reporter Karyn Maughan points out ( https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/ramaphosa-has-case-to-answer-on-marikana-collusion-but-not-on-murder-of-miners-court-rules-20220705-2 ) this leaves open the question of whether, in terms of legal causation, the president may yet be liable for pressuring the police brass in a manner that resulted in the miners'deaths, setting the scene for them using excessive, lethal force. 

I invited Karyn to explain, explore and debate this particular complexity.

We also asked a crucial non-legal question- even if Mr Ramaphosa is legally not liable in any way for the Marikana massacre, does he bear any other kind of responsibility, morally or politically? After all, legal questions do not exhaust range of questions about responsibility. 

Enjoy

I asked you to send me any questions, without fear of being shamed or lashed, that you have about homosexuality/queer people/"the queer community" etc. There were too many! We'll do another round in future. For now, in this episode of In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser, I offered answers or thoughts (where clear answers evaded me) in response to the following ten sets of questions/comments: 

Question 1

Where do you stand on the recent ruling that trans women can't participate in professional swimming?

Question 2

Hi Eusebius. I just wanted to ask, at what age did you confirm to yourself that you are gay? Did you feel as a child that you were different? What was the family's reaction to you 'coming out' as it were?

Question 3

From whom did you learn about the workings of non-hetero sex? (Where and when did you learn this, perhaps?) Do you think that the process of engaging with the physical aspects of your sexuality would have been easier had you had some kind of education in a formal schooling environment?

Question 4

How do you suggest that toxic masculinity is addressed within the 'community'?

Question 5

What do you think of the younger black and older white male relationships often where the younger is straight and has a female companion in the township or the village?

Question 6

Narcissist tendencies and homosexuality. Discuss. 

Question 7

Do you think bisexuality is real?

Question 8

Should I tell my child that I know they are gay?

Question 9

My friend has a crush on me and my wife is concerned but I don’t know how to address this with my friend. 

Question 10

Why are gay men obsessed with appearances?

Enjoy, and PLEASE share this episode widely as it may help someone who is open to learning and/or to re-examining views they have, to spend a bit more time on issues that might have seemed settled to them, but which they may now recognise as perhaps more complicated.